# Photon vs Stirling-PDF

> Two self-hosted projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.

| | Photon | Stirling-PDF |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 54/100 | 87/100 ✓ |
| Rank in category | #16 of 85 in Feed Reader | #1 of 46 in Document Management |
| GitHub stars | 557 | 95 336 ✓ |
| Stars, last 30 days | +0 | +2 374 ✓ |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 9 | 25 ✓ |
| Latest release | v2.4.3 · 30 Jul 2026 | v3.2.2 · 24 Oct 2026 ✓ |
| Setup | Moderate | Moderate |
| Official Docker image | Yes | Yes |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | Other |
| Main language | Svelte | Typescript |

## Which one should you pick?

Stirling-PDF scores 87/100 against 54/100 for Photon, so it is the safer default.

Stirling-PDF ships more often: 25 stable releases in the past year, against 9 for Photon.

Stirling-PDF is growing faster right now (+2 374 stars in 30 days).

## Details

- [Photon](https://selfhost.directory/project/photon-2) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/photon-2.md)
- [Stirling-PDF](https://selfhost.directory/project/stirling-pdf) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/stirling-pdf.md)

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Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/photon-2-vs-stirling-pdf